Posted on 01/31/2004 4:55:14 AM PST by goldstategop
The most serious threat to President Bush's second term is not a Democrat; it is the growing mass of disenchanted Republicans who are accepting the proposition that there is little or no difference between the two major parties.
"Where are they going to go?" says a well-placed Bush operative. "You know they'll never vote for Dean or Kerry. And there's no Ross Perot on the horizon."
Where will they go? Nowhere. And that's the point. Republicans, especially the more conservative variety, are likely to stay home in droves. So far, the Republican strategists appear to be oblivious to this possibility.
Perhaps conservative Republicans expected too much too soon from a Republican administration. The Democrats had eight years to fill the agencies of government with activists from their special-interest groups. It is true that President Bush quickly dumped the most egregious of these types, whose positions are political plums. The underlings hired by the political appointees, however, are protected by civil-service regulations and cannot be fired, or even reassigned, without non-political justification.
The disappointment of conservatives goes much deeper and questions the fundamental philosophy which guides the administration. After eight years of watching the Clinton-Gore team march the United States directly into the jaws of a global socialist government, Bush supporters expected a screeching halt and a major course correction.
Conservatives cheered Bush's withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol – a screeching halt and a major course correction – while socialists abroad and Democrats at home condemned the president.
When Bush defied the U.N. Security Council, and created a multi-national coalition to eliminate Saddam Hussein, conservatives split, some cheering the action, some joining the Democrats at home and socialists abroad who condemned the action.
The Patriot Act, the prescription drug program, the "guest worker" program, the so-called "free trade" programs and a half-trillion dollar deficit have left conservatives reeling, wondering why a Republican administration and Congress have produced results that look so much like what they would expect from a Democrat administration and Congress.
Consequently, many, many Republicans have thrown up their hands and have decided to either join some doomed third-party movement or simply stay home.
While this reaction may be understandable, it is not only self-defeating, it violates the first law of true believers: Never, never, never, never give up!
It is true that Republican hold the White House and a razor-thin majority in Congress. It is also true that the nation is divided, almost down the middle, between people who want to continue the Clinton-Gore path toward global socialist government and those who want to abandon that path and move the United States toward more individual freedom, free markets and voluntary cooperation among sovereign nations.
Rather than give up and stay at home, a better strategy may be for conservatives to realize that the election of President Bush in 2000, and securing a slim majority in Congress in 2002, is just the first step in a long journey. Conservatives should realize that it takes 60 senators to prevail over the Democrats' filibuster.
Rather than throw in the towel, conservatives might throw their effort into the campaigns of conservative candidates for the House and Senate, and for the state legislatures and county commissions.
The global socialist agenda moved into high gear after the fall of the Berlin Wall, aided dramatically by the progressive Democrats in the United States. The Bush election in 2000 disrupted that agenda, and to them, nothing is more important than removing the Bush obstacle. Conservatives who decide to give up and stay at home will be aiding and abetting the enemies of freedom.
A return to progressive Democrat leadership in the United States is a return to the Kyoto Protocol and U.N. control over energy use in the United States. It is a return to subservience to the United Nations – as Howard Dean says, to get "permission" from the U.N. before defending our nation. It is a return to total government control over land use, education and every other facet of life.
In 2000, conservatives barely got a foothold on the bridge of the ship of state. In 2002, conservatives began to get a grip on the wheel. In 2004, conservatives have an opportunity to bring on more hands and to permanently discharge some of the progressive Democrats who continue to fight desperately for control.
Democrats alone cannot regain control. If conservatives give up, throw in the towel and fail to show up for the November battle, the Democrats will win by default. Conservatives who truly believe that freedom is better than socialism, those who want freedom for their children rather than a world socialist government, will never, never, never, never give up. They will show up in November.
Bad news Becky, there already is a Lib at 1600 Penn. Ave....
Don't let the door of reality and freedom hit you in your "principled"(meaning unappeasable, love to whine,can't wait to get my kudos from the DNC/LP {same thing}) posterior on the way out. You're not a loss,you never were a gain.
You are right. I also believe the Republicans set it up so Conseratives would be so conflicted on election day, they would go ahead and vote for GW and his amnesty plan, fearing the Democrats would win.
I'd die before I'd vote for a Democrat. I'm going to vote for my Republican governor, because I believe every state is going to have to fight on its own agains illegals coming in and taking over. We are not going to have any help from either party.
What a mess. I'll never forgive Bush and the Republicans, as well as those slimy Democrats, for giving this country away, NEVER. How dare they! When are the Republicans going to become anything but pissyant bunglers?
Conservatives have to exercise some patience. We are not going to get everything we want immediately. We are displaying the the very thing we criticize about the youth of today...the desire for instant gratification.
In due time we can get most of everything we want for our nation, but we have to realize we have to take the unstable foundation apart one brick at a time and rebuild it in a stable fashion that will stand the test of time.
Giving in to the desire for instant ratification only strengthens the Liberals'hand. You think that you don;t like some of the socialist programs proposed now, just wait until the Democrats gain control of the White House and Congress again! See what your votes for a third party candidate will get you. While it may make you feel like you are getting revenge, you are in fact dooming any chance for the conservative agenda to survive.
Just remember, all in good time.
Apparently your future for America consists of more domestic Socialism than Clinton could ever have thought of asking for. You are a socialist at heart.
Just what does it take from Bush for him to convince you that his core political principles are farther left than Clinton's? Does he have to divorce his wife for Andrew Sullivan? Does he have to nationalize a few industries? Does he have to raise the income tax to a top bracket of 75%? Does he have to push for universal healthcare? What does he have to do? He's pushing for funding increases in every single left wing area except abortion grants. Dear God, riff raff like him may keep us sorta independent but we'll become domestically like Argentina in the process.
Vote for the Constitution Party or you'll just be part of the problem. People who refuse to vote for a true conservative party are the ones that reinforce this sort of mindset among the Bushies. If Bush loses to a real conservative candidate in 2004 taking 20-25% of the popular vote, it'll send shockwaves through both parties, not just the RP. Your vote isn't going to change the election, don't waste it on what you don't believe in. Of course since you have yet to elaborate on just how Bush really is securing a good future maybe you are just one of those people who thinks limited government is nice but a belligerent foreign policy is the best thing for us right now.
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